Week 3, lesson 1 Phoneme "sh" and Grapheme "sh" - Phonics Phase 3 - Lesson plan

Week 3, Day 1 of the phonics curriculum introduces young learners to the phoneme /sh/ and its corresponding grapheme . The objective of the lesson is to familiarise students with this new sound through various engaging activities. The lesson begins with a fun reveal of the 'Sheep in a Jeep' flashcard, prompting children to guess who might be associated with the /sh/ sound. This is followed by a 'Quickdash' activity, where children review previously learned grapheme and pictophone flashcards, shouting out the sounds at an increasing pace to sharpen their recall.

The teaching segment features a story about the Sheep in a Jeep, with a focus on the /sh/ sound, particularly when describing the sound of the jeep's tyres sliding on dirt. An accompanying action has the children swaying side to side, imitating the jeep's movement while making the /sh/ sound. Practise sessions include learning how to write the digraph, with children finger writing in the air or on a peer's back. The 'Real or Not Real' game involves decoding words written on the board and determining their authenticity, with examples like 'sheb', 'cash', and 'ship'. The lesson concludes with an application of the newly learned phoneme, where students use mini whiteboards to write dictated words containing the /sh/ digraph, such as 'shed' and 'fish'. Extension activities like using chalk and a letter hunt are suggested to further reinforce the day's learning.